Friday, July 19, 2013

Thoughts and Things About Writing

Hello readers! Hope you are having a great day! If you didn't already know, I am a writer. Not professional, of course. A few years ago, a family friend of mine wrote a book and gave me a signed copy. Along with the book, she gave me advice about writing. The one piece of wisdom that caught my attention was getting a blog. My friend said that blogging is the best place to start. It gives you chance to get your words out into the world, though you may not be published. I feel as if I have not used this blog as a tool for my writing experience as much as I think I could. So, I'd like to add a little more. And to start it all off, I want to just share with you all thoughts and feelings I've had with writing.

Writing has always been a passion. Yes, I can't get enough of my running, piano, and volleyball. But there's just something special about writing that I can't quite explain. It's the rush of the words that are out there. Countless words that have all sorts of meanings. I don't think people realize how much power words contain. It's mind blowing to think about. But the real spark is putting those words together. Putting all those meanings together in a sentence to form one big meaning. I like to think about it in the big picture, though. All those pages, with all the meanings you could imagine, telling you something. Informing you. Convicting you. Compelling you. It truly is a powerful thing. And as a Christian, it's even more amazing to see how God can use my words, our words, to speak through us.

When I think of stories, I usually think about the parables Jesus told during His ministry. Those were stories with meaning. Stories with a purpose. Those purposes sometimes being to inform, to convict, to compel, but most of all to show God's love, compassion, and grace. It's a beautiful thing. As a writer, those parables show me how I can write with a purpose. But when you think about it, they're really not my words. Now you may be thinking, "This chick is nuts. She makes no sense". And that's okay. Let me explain in a way that just might make sense to you.

Lord of the Rings is one of the most popular trilogies in the history of literature and film. I know a lot of you have heard of it. But the person behind it all was J.R.R. Tolkien. I will never forget the words he gave to describe himself as a writer. He called himself merely a "sub creator" of his stories. Tolkien was a firm believe in The Lord. He knew that his talent of storytelling was a gift from God. Something God used. But more importantly, something God spoke through. God gave Tolkien the words, the meaning, and the story. Tolkien was the tool God used to bring the story into our world. You may be surprised, but Tolkien's fairytales really do have some powerful meanings and purposes to them. (My personal favorite is in The Hobbit, where Bilbo chooses to step out of his comfort zone and take a leap of faith; an adventure that will change him forever.)

I hope that may give you a clearer picture of what I mean. God gives me the words, I deliver 'em. I may not ever be published, but I have this little blog, my dear readers. I intend to use it for God's glory, especially through this passion for writing He gave me.

And its okay if no one cares to read what I have to say. As long as I give it my all and allow my Savior to speak through my words, to give them a whole new meaning and purpose, I will be content in that!